Bids are being invited from NHS managers and eight private companies to take over the running of the United Bristol Healthcare Trust and the Royal United Hospital (RUH) Bath, for an initial period of three years.

The Bristol Trust and Bath hospital were given "no-star" ratings in last year's hospital league table.

The shortlisted candidates will be announced in March, with the successful bidder due to take over in July.

The private sector companies

BMI Healthcare BUPA Capio Healthcare Interhealth Canada Quo Health Secta Group Serco Health Hospitalia activHealth

Geoff Scaife, strategic health authority chief executive, said the franchising process did not signal a change in status for the hospitals involved.

"Treatment and all other NHS care will continue to be free at the point of delivery for the patient.

"Any private company which secures a franchise will be required to operate as part of the NHS family."

The decision to allow private firms to run failing NHS hospitals was described as "shameful" by former Health Secretary Frank Dobson when announced last year.

'Health hazard'

Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, Don Foster, joined the protest, saying that NHS Franchising was 'ministerial madness.'

"Alan Milburn has placed a crazy gimmick ahead of an accurate assessment of how the RUH is performing.

"His diagnosis is wrong, and his treatment plan is, frankly, a public health hazard.

"The zero-star rating confirmed the problems at the hospital 12 months ago, but bears no relationship to the current levels of patient care there," he said.